A vineyard in the middle of Khao Yai: The mission of chasing a dream by a man nearing retirement

After hearing the news that "Sakuna Rosé," a light pink wine from GranMonte Vineyard and Winery, was selected to be served in First Class and Business Class on Thai Airways, as someone who has always followed the important milestones of Khao Yai wines, I was extremely delighted. I couldn't help but feel proud because I know that GranMonte's journey to this point hasn't been easy.

Going back 27 years to around early February 1999, the first wine grapes firmly took root in the soil of Khao Yai. This was driven by the determined heart of Khun Visooth Lohitnavy, a man who was nearing retirement from a multinational company at the time.

"I started the vineyard five years before I retired," the 83-year-old Khun Visooth said while inspecting workers harvesting grapes on an early March evening, marking the tail end of this year's harvest season.

Normally, GranMonte harvests once a year, with the season running from February to March. Once the mission is accomplished, the fruit-free vines enter their standard maintenance phase. Today, GranMonte possesses its own know-how and expertise to the point where wine industry professionals from both Thailand and abroad come to learn from them every year.

For some who only look at today's success, they might think that running a vineyard is easy—that with just money, you can magically create everything. Of course, everyone has the right to think that, but what the reality actually is... that's another story.

Khun Visooth's life before pioneering GranMonte Vineyard was quite adventurous. From a Suankularb Wittayalai School student, he went on to study automotive engineering in Germany. After graduating, he worked in the automotive industry and was a race car driver for a period. He eventually had the opportunity to work on an automotive magazine alongside Kwanchai Paphatphong, the great figure behind the Motor Expo, with Khun Visooth serving as the editor-in-chief at the time. His life changed once again when he decided to join a British company distributing various hygiene products, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals as a department manager. He was then promoted to regional manager in Singapore before returning to work in Thailand until his retirement, which served as the transition into starting the vineyard later on.

"First of all, regarding the stories going around, especially about why I started the vineyard—some say this, some say that. But the truth is, I just like drinking wine," Khun Visooth smiled slightly after explaining his origins.

Because he worked in a multinational company, work events always came with drinks. From someone who didn't drink, he began to take an interest in wine and started appreciating its taste. This eventually became a small spark that made the office worker want to build a vineyard.

"Thirty years ago, hardly anyone in Thailand was doing this. Even if there were, it was very few. I saw it as an opportunity, and I believed that if I did it well, it would go well and have a high chance of success. And by doing it well, I mean it has to be truly excellent. You have to give it your all and pay full attention to it because we knew that to make it good, we needed a truly great product, which had to come from good grapes from the vineyard. I also saw that a vineyard would act as a draw for tourists as well."

Once he had a clear conclusion for himself, the man who was five years away from retirement at the time began looking for suitable land to plant wine grapes. Since Khun Visooth knew the Khao Yai area better than anywhere else and saw that the environment was right, he decided to initially buy 50 rai of land from the locals to start building his dream.

"When we first came, we started way up there (pointing to the road at the vineyard's entrance). We saw large trees and just drove right through the jungle. Originally, this place was an old cornfield and even had cashew nut trees. We thought this place was perfect for growing grapes, and it even had a pond, so we decided to choose this spot."

Initially, despite some preparation and gathering knowledge about viticulture to a certain degree from foreign friends—both Australian and French—combined with knowledge accumulated from reading and drinking experiences, the knowledge he had wasn't exactly meant for growing grapes in a hot and humid country like Thailand.

It wasn't until his eldest daughter, Khun Nikki-Visootha Lohitnavy, went to study viticulture and winemaking in Australia that GranMonte really started to develop its grape-growing methods further. They adapted the vines to suit the environment, and when combined with their existing knowledge, they created their own unique know-how, a method later known as Tropical Viticulture.

"Now that we've started to learn how to do it, it turns out that today people come to learn from us, both from Thailand and abroad. For example, right now, we have two French people here."

27 years of perseverance on the path to becoming a Thai wine recognized on the global stage.

After acquiring the first 50-rai plot of land, Khun Visooth planted the first plot of grapevines in February 1999 and gradually built GranMonte through sheer perseverance. Despite facing numerous obstacles, he never once thought about giving up on his dream even for a day. Today, the vineyard spans over 100 rai.

"I want to say that we had the determination to do this. Therefore, at first, we didn't care how much people would like our wine. We just wanted to get the vineyard in proper order first; the wine would follow later."

The Thai wine industry took another step forward when Khun Visooth spearheaded the founding of the Thai Wine Association around 2004-2005. Seeing that there were starting to be several winemakers at the time, he established the association to promote and encourage Thais to drink locally produced wines, as most Thais back then heavily favored imported wines, especially from France.

"We didn't just set up the association for the sake of it, but we established a manual for making truly authentic domestic wine. It details exactly what must be done—for example, the wine must be made exclusively from grapes, and those grapes must be domestic raw materials. But if you want to blend in imported materials, we allow up to 15%, provided you include the details on the back label. You have to clearly inform the consumers. As for us, we use 100% domestic ingredients. And for this association, I've been the president all along (smiles)."

However, during a time when Thailand wasn't yet that into locally produced wines, it took the association over a decade to firmly stand its ground.

"Because we were steadfast about this, local drinkers, especially those in the wine circle, knew we were serious. This made the wine we produced start getting better and gradually gaining acceptance. Unfortunately, few other Thai wine producers have followed in our footsteps."

Khun Visooth insists that the key to making high-quality wine is, first and foremost, creating a good vineyard. The simple principle is that good grapes make good wine. But in the early days, no matter how good the wine was, the Thai market was still not very receptive, and sales weren't spectacular. It wasn't until GranMonte's wines consecutively won several world-class awards that the spotlight began to shine brighter on Thai wine.

"If I remember correctly, the first year of sales was probably around 2002; those were the early vintages. But back then, it wasn't a very good wine yet. The really good ones started coming around 2009 onwards—that's when you could call it truly good wine. What's strange is that the wine from the 2009 harvest was incredibly good and completely sold out, so I actually had to go ask to drink it with friends who had bought it (laughs). I was very surprised when we opened it. I think there was a Syrah and a Cabernet Sauvignon at the time, both very good red wines. We knew what would happen if we did it right. But to do it well, you have to do it yourself. Even if you're rich, have passion, and have subordinates, if you don't oversee it, if you let others do it and don't get hands-on yourself, the results won't turn out like this."

If success is a finish line, GranMonte Vineyard and Winery today has probably crossed the finish line in several races already. But the journey of this Khao Yai vineyard doesn't end here, as currently, both daughters have stepped in to fully carry on their father's dream.

Khun Nikki-Visootha Lohitnavy, the eldest daughter, serves as an Oenologist, or expert in viticulture and winemaking. Meanwhile, Khun Mimi-Suvisooth Lohitnavy, the second daughter, has taken charge of the marketing and public relations department, which is a crucial part in introducing GranMonte wine to the world.

"Since we started, you could say everything just fell into place because our kids were interested, and both of them do their jobs well."

You could say that both daughters bring immense peace of mind to their father. They are also the hearts of their mother, Khun Sakuna Lohitnavy—the wind beneath Khun Visooth's wings, who played a crucial role in building GranMonte to its success today.

The couple has been by each other's side since the day they planted the first grapevine on the soil of Khao Yai. And throughout the journey, no matter what happened, any feelings of tension would always ease and lighten thanks to the magical power of his wife.

"She's like the hind legs of the elephant, making my journey to follow my dream steady. Because she is a thoughtful person who is firm on financial matters. As for me, I'm the go-getter who sometimes needs to be reminded to think things through. And Khun Sakuna has always been a great caretaker for our children as well," Khun Visooth said of his life partner who has been through thick and thin with him.

And of course, the name of the elegant light pink wine served on Thai Airways comes from the name of Khun Sakuna, the wife and mother of the Lohitnavy family.

GranMonte in the days the world knows it, and the journey toward an even better future.

"If you ask about GranMonte's future, I want both of my daughters to keep it going and make it even better than this because we haven't reached our peak yet. And even though I am a pioneer who started modern wine here, what I want people to remember me for is helping develop the authentic Thai wine industry and getting it recognized by people in the industry both in Thailand and abroad." This heartfelt thought from a living legacy was shared amidst the cool weather of Khao Yai on a late evening at the end of the harvest season.

During the conversation, the workers were still diligently picking grapes, a harvest that lasts from early evening until dawn. Turning to the 83-year-old pioneer, he was still actively and joyfully walking around inspecting the workers.

"Since day one, I never imagined this kind of success today. But you could use the phrase 'Follow your dreams,' you know. Like, I dreamed of doing this, but I didn't expect it to go this far." A small smile slowly appeared on his face. And if we could turn back time, the face of the 55-year-old man who started building his own dream back then would probably look very much like it did right at that moment.

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